1. Pompeii, Italy For centuries, Pompeii was buried beneath layers of ash, completely hidden from view. It wasn’t until 1748, when workers were digging to build a palace for the King of Naples, that they stumbled upon the city’s remains. […]
1. The French Revolution Gave Us the Sans-Culottes Look When the French Revolution swept through the streets of Paris, fashion changed along with the politics. Out went the aristocratic silk breeches and powdered wigs, and in came the “sans-culottes” style,
1. Sleeping With a Garlic Necklace in Bulgaria In Bulgaria, kids sometimes wore garlic necklaces at night to ward off evil spirits and bad dreams. It sounds spooky now, but back then, garlic was thought to have magical protective powers,
1. Messengers on Horseback Long before texts or emails, empires relied on trusted messengers traveling by horseback. These riders had to memorize messages or carry scrolls, and they covered long, dangerous routes, sometimes through enemy territory. The Mongols, for example,
1. Etruscan Long before the rise of the Roman Empire, the Etruscans ruled central Italy and had a language all their own. While their civilization left behind beautiful art and elaborate tombs, their written words remain mostly a mystery. We’ve
1. The Curse of the Hope Diamond – Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. You wouldn’t expect to find a curse behind a display case in the Smithsonian, but the Hope Diamond has a long, eerie past that makes even the bravest
1. The Friends Apartment in Joey If Monica and Rachel’s purple-walled apartment looked familiar in the short-lived spin-off Joey, that’s because it was. The set was slightly revamped but the layout stayed mostly the same, especially the big window and
